I really don't know why the heck everyone (almost) is bitching and moaning about the upcoming GHOSTBUSTERS film. People complain "because it's a reboot vs. a sequel" or "because it's directed by Paul Feig"...what the heck??
Bryan Singer directed X-MEN. And then he directed X-MEN UNITED. I don't remember if he did the 3rd one or not, but at some point a different director took on the job, and fanboys were enraged over it. They kept comparing what they felt X-Men should be to the films the director had previously done. The director talked to Entertainment Weekly about it and basically said you guys are nuts, citing prior uproar over the fact that Bryan Singer was directing X-MEN. I'm sure there's more examples of this kind of stupidity.
At least one guy on Ghostbustersnews.com said that Paul Feig is a terrible writer and director. I am curious -- what is on his resume that is so awful? I may not have any interest in BRIDESMAIDS or any of the small handful of other feature length films he's directed or written, but that doesn't mean he did a poor job with what he was given. I saw part of it, very small in totality, and it struck me as a quite professional production. Writing wise, I didn't see enough of it to say anything good or bad about it. I can't even think of anything else he's done except this other film I was reading about on IMDB called I AM DAVID, which I also haven't seen...not my kinda thing, really...might be something to watch if I had a gathering with friends or family...like on T-day or Xmas...or in an alternate universe where I have friends...in Heaven, there will be more intimate fellowship if I understand correctly, but on present day Earth I am impaired in that regard. I don't know why we would watch movies in Heaven. But who knows? I sure am not qualified to say...
Friday, May 29, 2015
Hit Music in my head 2013-2015
SUMMER BONES by Hit The Lights
STORY SO FAR by Story So Far
THROUGH ART WE ARE EQUALS by Slaves
DISGUSTING by Beartooth
SOVEREIGN by Michael W. Smith
THE BONES OF WHAT YOU BELIEVE by CHVRCHES
TWO-FACED CHARADE by Famous Last Words
WHAT YOU DONT SEE by Story So Far
Most of these I've discovered over the past 6 months to a year. I just now found out that I actually like Beartooth's DISGUSTING (2014). I listened to it late last year and I thought very little of it. Weird.
Mid-late last year I discovered how great We Came As Romans is. I don't care much for the doomy-Gremlin vocals, but the singer's got a real nice voice and the melodies are great, with a hefty dose of heart pounding anthem-ness! Same goes with Famous Last Words' TWO-FACED CHARADE.
There might be others I'm forgetting...many of these I haven't bought...I'm not a big fan of Hit The Lights' SUMMER BONES, even though I did enjoy it 2 or 3 times at least. The songs seem structured very similarly to their past work, almost like what VH1 or MTV (I can't remember which) accused Ace of Base of -- that is, their hits all had the same rhythm.
THROUGH ART WE ARE ALL EQUALS seems quite possibly anti-Christian. There's the opening track "The Fire Down Below", which says "God stopped listening 'cause the world kept crying". Then there's the song title of "There Is Only One God And His Name Is Death", which contains a beautiful melody, the lyrics don't contain those words, but I still have to wonder why the band leader Johnny Craig would name the song that. If I were loaded with $$$(cha-ching), I wouldn't feel too hesitant to spend the $8 Amazon is asking for it, but since I don't even earn my money & I don't have much of it, I don't see how I can justify paying for it.
I did just now buy DISGUSTING by Beartooth. I'm not sure what the lyrics are about. I'm half ready to fall asleep, and I'm writing this so I can't even concentrate much on it. It's only $7 at Amazon w/ free MP3 download. I might sell it when it comes.
I've bought most of TWO-FACED CHARADE by FLW on MP3, although I didn't save the songs...oh well, I can still listen to it on Rdio or some similar service if I'm at the PC. Not an urgent matter by any means. It's not something I generally enjoy listening to. Not like a daily thing, ya know....
STORY SO FAR by Story So Far
THROUGH ART WE ARE EQUALS by Slaves
DISGUSTING by Beartooth
SOVEREIGN by Michael W. Smith
THE BONES OF WHAT YOU BELIEVE by CHVRCHES
TWO-FACED CHARADE by Famous Last Words
WHAT YOU DONT SEE by Story So Far
Most of these I've discovered over the past 6 months to a year. I just now found out that I actually like Beartooth's DISGUSTING (2014). I listened to it late last year and I thought very little of it. Weird.
Mid-late last year I discovered how great We Came As Romans is. I don't care much for the doomy-Gremlin vocals, but the singer's got a real nice voice and the melodies are great, with a hefty dose of heart pounding anthem-ness! Same goes with Famous Last Words' TWO-FACED CHARADE.
There might be others I'm forgetting...many of these I haven't bought...I'm not a big fan of Hit The Lights' SUMMER BONES, even though I did enjoy it 2 or 3 times at least. The songs seem structured very similarly to their past work, almost like what VH1 or MTV (I can't remember which) accused Ace of Base of -- that is, their hits all had the same rhythm.
THROUGH ART WE ARE ALL EQUALS seems quite possibly anti-Christian. There's the opening track "The Fire Down Below", which says "God stopped listening 'cause the world kept crying". Then there's the song title of "There Is Only One God And His Name Is Death", which contains a beautiful melody, the lyrics don't contain those words, but I still have to wonder why the band leader Johnny Craig would name the song that. If I were loaded with $$$(cha-ching), I wouldn't feel too hesitant to spend the $8 Amazon is asking for it, but since I don't even earn my money & I don't have much of it, I don't see how I can justify paying for it.
I did just now buy DISGUSTING by Beartooth. I'm not sure what the lyrics are about. I'm half ready to fall asleep, and I'm writing this so I can't even concentrate much on it. It's only $7 at Amazon w/ free MP3 download. I might sell it when it comes.
I've bought most of TWO-FACED CHARADE by FLW on MP3, although I didn't save the songs...oh well, I can still listen to it on Rdio or some similar service if I'm at the PC. Not an urgent matter by any means. It's not something I generally enjoy listening to. Not like a daily thing, ya know....
Wednesday, May 27, 2015
God's love, despite all this...
My mother stated Nobody deserves anything, we are sinners and we are lucky to have hope of eternal life in Heaven with God. I don't know if this is the general consensus of Christians or if this is just her revealing how she feels about herself.
I didn't find anything in The Bible to support this, either in direct Bible reading or when studying The Story.
I do recall either first or second hand a quote of "the wages of sin is death" or something like that...however, from Adam & Eve onto those early humans who knew of God but decided to build their own God(s), and on to the days of Abraham and Sarah, and the days of Israel's flourishing, there has been numerous opportunities to embrace the one and only true God. I find it confusing that people found it so difficult. For me, I find it difficult just accomplishing anything. I don't work, I have no other things to do that involve opportunities to spread the Gospel of Jesus' love and salvation, and most of the time I just sit on my ass and do what I'm used to doing, shopping and listening to music. I find it a comfortable yet somewhat sour way to live. The struggle lies in what many call "self preservation instinct", which may not even be a real thing, maybe it is...I don't parachute, I don't bunji jump, I don't skydive...I haven't tried it, but I have tried the smallest roller coasters and I've sat in the passenger seat while my mother drove on hills, doing whatever trick it was that made my whole lower half of my body go into stroke mode almost...or...idk...not sure how to describe it...you maybe already know what I mean...anyway...It makes perfect sense that the sensation one gets with rollercoasters and rumbly hill drives would be magnified significantly if you do something similar like fall midair or bunji jump...lifestyle changes like getting a job at the age of 31 with no prior job experiences, or deciding to call up The Salvation Army and request and opportunity to volunteer, or whatever, is about the same feeling...just thinking about it gets my heart pounding FT13 style. I'm not sure that can really be compared to going out of your way to create a God and worship it. For the people who grew up doing that, it seems like it'd be easy to recognize the Truth. I still am confused as to what God expects of me. My pastor seemed adamant that God is calling me to do something. I'm not sure how he knows this. If he's calling me, the connection must be broken.
The basic gist of my feelings about "we deserve Hell b/c we're sinners" is that Jesus/God/The Holy Spirit still wants us with Him. If we're such horrendous creatures, why didn't God wipe us off the face of the earth long ago? The Bible supposedly preaches Holiness, not sure what that is exactly given the heaping pile of laws the Jews were supposed to keep in order to maintain Holiness and the lifestyle that every non-Amish U.S.A. resident maintains, including my Church of God members...I mean, I could just not sin...I think the only problem I'd have with that is my temper and lack of patience. I do tend to let rage roam within me. I need to stop that. That will probably require the work of The Holy Spirit. Everything else is pretty easy. The only hard thing would be remembering all the Jewish laws, which nobody seems keen on emphasizing...during our study of The Story we basically just skipped Leviticus. I'm not sure I fully understand Jesus message. I get the idea of God wanting mankind with him and that he died for our salvation. What I don't get is how Jewish culture and law are treated as irrelevant by Christians, at least today...
I guess it doesn't matter. I'm powerless, being as I am a mere mortal human being. It would take a lot to get me free of sin, or even mostly free of it. There's simply no motivation to stop lusting etc. Must I abstain from sexual activities before the Holy Spirit tames the beastly rage that overcomes me? I do believe the idea of Christians being holy is through the power of The Holy Spirit, we are to obtain holiness. If The Holy Spirit doesn't finish the job while I'm on Earth, what then? I certainly don't think I'm trying that hard. Of course, then there's people who work out 3x a week and practically destroy their muscles in the process...I certainly don't want to "burn out" as they say...or...idk...
Another thing I recall is my pastor preaching that God will be more excited to see us than we will be to see him. To me, that implies that our love for God will still be somewhat lax. My love for God is so lax it's almost non existent. But then again, if someone asked me how I know I love my mom, I'd say "Umm...I...um...." What is love? I certainly am not devoted. I don't do favors just to make God happy. Even with my mother, there's only so far I'm willing to go to make her happy. I can save her a few steps to the kitchen and make her lunch. I can't do that for God. Does God even eat? Maybe I should set out a sandwich before I go to bed, just as a consideration.
I've heard that in Heaven, we'll no longer be sinful. I do wonder if in Heaven, some of the things mentioned in The Bible will no longer be so bad. In Eden, the garden thereof, Adam and Eve were naked. This was at the beginning of their existence. Then they ate the apple and their nakedness was considered "indecent exposure". Also, something I haven't quite figured out for certain: God says to even the Jewish people that anyone who has a constant hankering for meat may eat meat as often as he wants so long as it doesn't have blood in it. He doesn't specify a serving size or a duration of time that one can spend eating it before it becomes categorized as "gluttony", at least not that I've come across so far. I know people need to work, but what else? I'm curious as to how the daily structure of a Jewish person was laid out in God's mind. I haven't quite gotten to the part where the Jewish people settle into God's promised land, I've been reading about things the Jewish people need to know before overtaking it from the child murdering idol worshippers who lived there. My mom said one time that the Jewish people never did abide by God's laws. I know there was an extremely drawn out period of time of idol worship within Israel and that eventually led to Israel being divided into two nations and then eventually losing its' status as a nation altogether. It wasn't until after Adolf Hitler murdered 6 million of them that the Jewish people were given some land to call their own.
Hmm...
I didn't find anything in The Bible to support this, either in direct Bible reading or when studying The Story.
I do recall either first or second hand a quote of "the wages of sin is death" or something like that...however, from Adam & Eve onto those early humans who knew of God but decided to build their own God(s), and on to the days of Abraham and Sarah, and the days of Israel's flourishing, there has been numerous opportunities to embrace the one and only true God. I find it confusing that people found it so difficult. For me, I find it difficult just accomplishing anything. I don't work, I have no other things to do that involve opportunities to spread the Gospel of Jesus' love and salvation, and most of the time I just sit on my ass and do what I'm used to doing, shopping and listening to music. I find it a comfortable yet somewhat sour way to live. The struggle lies in what many call "self preservation instinct", which may not even be a real thing, maybe it is...I don't parachute, I don't bunji jump, I don't skydive...I haven't tried it, but I have tried the smallest roller coasters and I've sat in the passenger seat while my mother drove on hills, doing whatever trick it was that made my whole lower half of my body go into stroke mode almost...or...idk...not sure how to describe it...you maybe already know what I mean...anyway...It makes perfect sense that the sensation one gets with rollercoasters and rumbly hill drives would be magnified significantly if you do something similar like fall midair or bunji jump...lifestyle changes like getting a job at the age of 31 with no prior job experiences, or deciding to call up The Salvation Army and request and opportunity to volunteer, or whatever, is about the same feeling...just thinking about it gets my heart pounding FT13 style. I'm not sure that can really be compared to going out of your way to create a God and worship it. For the people who grew up doing that, it seems like it'd be easy to recognize the Truth. I still am confused as to what God expects of me. My pastor seemed adamant that God is calling me to do something. I'm not sure how he knows this. If he's calling me, the connection must be broken.
The basic gist of my feelings about "we deserve Hell b/c we're sinners" is that Jesus/God/The Holy Spirit still wants us with Him. If we're such horrendous creatures, why didn't God wipe us off the face of the earth long ago? The Bible supposedly preaches Holiness, not sure what that is exactly given the heaping pile of laws the Jews were supposed to keep in order to maintain Holiness and the lifestyle that every non-Amish U.S.A. resident maintains, including my Church of God members...I mean, I could just not sin...I think the only problem I'd have with that is my temper and lack of patience. I do tend to let rage roam within me. I need to stop that. That will probably require the work of The Holy Spirit. Everything else is pretty easy. The only hard thing would be remembering all the Jewish laws, which nobody seems keen on emphasizing...during our study of The Story we basically just skipped Leviticus. I'm not sure I fully understand Jesus message. I get the idea of God wanting mankind with him and that he died for our salvation. What I don't get is how Jewish culture and law are treated as irrelevant by Christians, at least today...
I guess it doesn't matter. I'm powerless, being as I am a mere mortal human being. It would take a lot to get me free of sin, or even mostly free of it. There's simply no motivation to stop lusting etc. Must I abstain from sexual activities before the Holy Spirit tames the beastly rage that overcomes me? I do believe the idea of Christians being holy is through the power of The Holy Spirit, we are to obtain holiness. If The Holy Spirit doesn't finish the job while I'm on Earth, what then? I certainly don't think I'm trying that hard. Of course, then there's people who work out 3x a week and practically destroy their muscles in the process...I certainly don't want to "burn out" as they say...or...idk...
Another thing I recall is my pastor preaching that God will be more excited to see us than we will be to see him. To me, that implies that our love for God will still be somewhat lax. My love for God is so lax it's almost non existent. But then again, if someone asked me how I know I love my mom, I'd say "Umm...I...um...." What is love? I certainly am not devoted. I don't do favors just to make God happy. Even with my mother, there's only so far I'm willing to go to make her happy. I can save her a few steps to the kitchen and make her lunch. I can't do that for God. Does God even eat? Maybe I should set out a sandwich before I go to bed, just as a consideration.
I've heard that in Heaven, we'll no longer be sinful. I do wonder if in Heaven, some of the things mentioned in The Bible will no longer be so bad. In Eden, the garden thereof, Adam and Eve were naked. This was at the beginning of their existence. Then they ate the apple and their nakedness was considered "indecent exposure". Also, something I haven't quite figured out for certain: God says to even the Jewish people that anyone who has a constant hankering for meat may eat meat as often as he wants so long as it doesn't have blood in it. He doesn't specify a serving size or a duration of time that one can spend eating it before it becomes categorized as "gluttony", at least not that I've come across so far. I know people need to work, but what else? I'm curious as to how the daily structure of a Jewish person was laid out in God's mind. I haven't quite gotten to the part where the Jewish people settle into God's promised land, I've been reading about things the Jewish people need to know before overtaking it from the child murdering idol worshippers who lived there. My mom said one time that the Jewish people never did abide by God's laws. I know there was an extremely drawn out period of time of idol worship within Israel and that eventually led to Israel being divided into two nations and then eventually losing its' status as a nation altogether. It wasn't until after Adolf Hitler murdered 6 million of them that the Jewish people were given some land to call their own.
Hmm...
Monday, May 25, 2015
Things to do instead of being an idiot...
movies:
sweet and sentimental:
A RIVER RUNS THROUGH IT
FORREST GUMP
FERRIS BUELLER'S DAY OFF
THE BREAKFAST CLUB (a little teen angst-y, but still mostly upbeat and positive)
MY GIRL (1991) (a slice of life movie, billed as a family film)
MANNEQUIN (1987) (A silly movie, but full of style, life and heart; a time capsule of the 1980's)
GHOSTBUSTERS (If you're afraid of ghosts or macabre subjects, this may be too "edgy" for u)
GHOSTBUSTERS II (See above)
GROUNDHOG DAY (I almost forgot! How could you! Here - please flog me!)
LIAR LIAR (Contains some VERY pg-13 stuff, but if that doesn't bother you and your kids can handle it or you don't have kids, then you can probably enjoy it for the laugh riot that I enjoyed it to be!)
MRS. DOUBTFIRE (Mostly a comedy, some melodrama toward the end)
E.T.: THE EXTRA-TERRESTRIAL (the title character is a little creepy looking, especially from the POV of a young child, but if said kid watches the film in its entirety, their fears should be quelled given the tone of the film, which as a young child was a bit too heavy for my liking, but I did sorta enjoy it. I don't watch it hardly ever these days, I saw it repeatedly as a kid, so I have most of the film memorized, but I do respect the artistry that went into the film)
STAR WARS TRILOGY 1977-1983 (The best way to see this is on VHS. The Blu ray editions are a jumbled mess given Lucasfilm LTD mixing live footage from 1977 with fake-as-all-get-out looking footage from 1997 and then dicking with it some more in 2004...I don't know if George Lucas, the face of Lucasfilm LTD, messed with it more since then...nor do I personally care anymore).
POLTERGEIST (1982) (I haven't seen the remake yet) - A horror film -- that means if you go to your local video store to rent it, you'll need to weed through box-covers upon box-covers, many containing rather nauseating images. I'd just go to Amazon and search directly for it and click "rent". Or buy, if you prefer...it's rated PG and unlike GREMLINS and THE INDIANA JONES TRILOGY, POLTERGEIST isn't in any need of re-certification. It is scary, but, ya know, it's a horror film...
TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD - (I much prefer the book, and WARNING: this film is in B&W (boo!))
there's others, but I'm getting tired of coming up with examples.
movies pt 2:
dark and tan
A.I.: ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE (2001) (I could write an entire novel-length review detailing the asinine comments this film has generated. It's not light and fluffy, but I don't know if it deserves a PG-13 rating...)
BIG FISH (2003) A little boring n spots, not my favorite movie, but not a total waste of time either.
JURASSIC PARK - kind of a bloody/carnage-y film. Basically sci-fi action, it's PG-13, nothing too traumatizing for older children (8-12), but, ya know, each kid is different...I don't agree 100% with the science, much of which is removed from the film, but aw heck, I still prefer the book over the film anyway...
INTERSTELLAR (2014) (not really a "dark" film, but doesn't really fit into the sweet category, even though it is lightly sentimental)
THE DARK KNIGHT TRILOGY (3 movies about the nature of justice as told through the journey of a man named Bruce Wayne)
(500) DAYS OF SUMMER (2008) A good love story, interesting presentation, kinda light and fluffy, but also a little sad in spots. The highs and lows of a relationship that didn't last forever and ever.
ALL THE REAL GIRLS (2003) an interesting premise; a guy who has a habit of breaking hearts falls in love for real and finds himself feeling guilty and thus not qualified to take her virginity...so he parades his virgin girlfriend around as a self-esteem booster, but reality catches up eventually.
12 ANGRY MEN (1957) - One of the few b&w films I enjoyed. A very intense presentation of a jury fighting for, and sometimes against, the rightful fate of a young man accused of murder.
FIGHT CLUB (a very grim movie, very philosophical, and I still don't know exactly what the point was)
TAXI DRIVR (1976) there's an Indian film from the '60's of the same name. This movie is very slow and brooding, but intense in its own quiet way.
THE EXORCIST (1973) - Again, prefer the original theatrical version over what is now being referred to as "The Extended Director's Cut", FKA "The Version You've Never Seen"...the newer one isn't gawdawful, it just strikes me as being needless and in some cases downright silly (what's with the demonic faces appearing on the wall as Ms. McNeil walks into her house after meeting with the neurologist? Ms. McNeil didn't even see them, so...ugh)
END OF DAYS (1999) - a very maligned but nonetheless eerie, explosive and appropriately sinister horror film with an Arnold Schwarzenegger action-hero slant) My favorite popcorn film of 1999 - the turn of the millennium, also the happiest days of my life, when the rest of the planet was seemingly watching the skies...
THE LOST WORLD: JURASSIC PARK (1997--1st sequel to JURASSIC PARK///A great popcorn flick, a fun instance of Steven Speilberg showing off his sadistic side)
Music
Anything by prog-rock-turned-prog-pop band Genesis (1967-1998) is good. I do prefer their last 3 CDs with Phil Collins as vocalist and drummer.
Oingo Boingo's 1st 2 CDs.
Various alternative rock CDs, most favored usually falling into the pop-punk/emo/metalcore genres.
CHVRCHES - The Bones Of What You Believe (damn, that's a good'un)
Michael W. Smith's SOVEREIGN
The Rocket Summer's LIFE WILL WRITE THE WORDS
AMERICAN FOOTBALL by American football (1999, Polyvinyl Record Co. release) (a killer album!)
Hidden In Plain View's farewell album 2007's RESOLUTION (Drive-Thru Records) (A high like no other)
THE REMOTE PART by Idlewild
---Ok, so I'm a little depressed. Sue me!
I don't read a lot, but these are books that I almost finished before either losing my place or taking so long getting through that I eventually said "f*** it" and ditched:
A GOOD AND HAPPY CHILD by Justin Evans
MY SISTER'S KEEPER by Jodi Picoult
and...there's others, I'm sure of it, but I'm not sure they qualify...either that or they aren't coming to mind...
MYSTIC RIVER contains so many thoughts/comments pertaining to this grim-ness of life that it becomes almost a joke.
SALEM FALLS by Jodi Picoult I didn't find any fault with, being a guy who spends all his days in his room by himself, but knowing that Jodi Picoult basically pulled this story out of her ass (see the reviews on Amazon) just makes me glad I didn't finish it. I actually returned it to the library b/c it was due and I couldn't renew it.
Books I ***DID*** finish are:
JURASSIC PARK by Dr. Michael Crichton
TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD by Harper Lee
MIDNIGHT IN THE GARDEN OF GOOD AND EVIL by John Berendt
UNHOLEY FIRE by Whitely Strieber
A bunch of Stephen King books, the ones that stand out most that I have gone back to and verified their richness are:
'SALEM'S LOT
THE DEAD ZONE
CUJO
PET SEMETARY
IT
As far as Snickers bars are concerned, there are good chocolate bars out there. I usually don't buy them b/c my cravings for chocolate are that of a heroin addict. My brain is wired to want it. Taste takes a back seat to the mental stimulant of eating uber-junk food. If I ever lose a good amount of weight (I'm at least 50 lbs overweight as I type this), then I can start buying quality fatness. But as things are, I need to stay away from it and I sure as heck don't need to spend exorberent amounts of money on it when I shouldn't be eating it in the first place!!! It's like spending money to watch porn. Which sadly I've done in the past, but that was before I discovered the several dozen handfuls of "YouTube of porn"s.
Uh...ok...this post has taken a bit of a sour turn...
EK:/I have no other interests. Politics? It's like watching a real life chainsaw massacre. Clothing? Uh...fashion is only good if you can pay for it. All I can afford are shirts that express a thought or feeling I have and stuff found in the bargain bins at Target. There certainly isn't much to talk about when it comes to clothing. It's for the eyes, not the eardrums or the mouths that pour into them. And sports is just too arbitrary. Here's a concept for a game where the rules are there for a reason and you are too: Arrive at a specified location, completing a series of tasks that are requested of you and then at the 5 days of completing these tasks, you get $200 to spend on whatever you want to spend it on!
sweet and sentimental:
A RIVER RUNS THROUGH IT
FORREST GUMP
FERRIS BUELLER'S DAY OFF
THE BREAKFAST CLUB (a little teen angst-y, but still mostly upbeat and positive)
MY GIRL (1991) (a slice of life movie, billed as a family film)
MANNEQUIN (1987) (A silly movie, but full of style, life and heart; a time capsule of the 1980's)
GHOSTBUSTERS (If you're afraid of ghosts or macabre subjects, this may be too "edgy" for u)
GHOSTBUSTERS II (See above)
GROUNDHOG DAY (I almost forgot! How could you! Here - please flog me!)
LIAR LIAR (Contains some VERY pg-13 stuff, but if that doesn't bother you and your kids can handle it or you don't have kids, then you can probably enjoy it for the laugh riot that I enjoyed it to be!)
MRS. DOUBTFIRE (Mostly a comedy, some melodrama toward the end)
E.T.: THE EXTRA-TERRESTRIAL (the title character is a little creepy looking, especially from the POV of a young child, but if said kid watches the film in its entirety, their fears should be quelled given the tone of the film, which as a young child was a bit too heavy for my liking, but I did sorta enjoy it. I don't watch it hardly ever these days, I saw it repeatedly as a kid, so I have most of the film memorized, but I do respect the artistry that went into the film)
STAR WARS TRILOGY 1977-1983 (The best way to see this is on VHS. The Blu ray editions are a jumbled mess given Lucasfilm LTD mixing live footage from 1977 with fake-as-all-get-out looking footage from 1997 and then dicking with it some more in 2004...I don't know if George Lucas, the face of Lucasfilm LTD, messed with it more since then...nor do I personally care anymore).
POLTERGEIST (1982) (I haven't seen the remake yet) - A horror film -- that means if you go to your local video store to rent it, you'll need to weed through box-covers upon box-covers, many containing rather nauseating images. I'd just go to Amazon and search directly for it and click "rent". Or buy, if you prefer...it's rated PG and unlike GREMLINS and THE INDIANA JONES TRILOGY, POLTERGEIST isn't in any need of re-certification. It is scary, but, ya know, it's a horror film...
TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD - (I much prefer the book, and WARNING: this film is in B&W (boo!))
there's others, but I'm getting tired of coming up with examples.
movies pt 2:
dark and tan
A.I.: ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE (2001) (I could write an entire novel-length review detailing the asinine comments this film has generated. It's not light and fluffy, but I don't know if it deserves a PG-13 rating...)
BIG FISH (2003) A little boring n spots, not my favorite movie, but not a total waste of time either.
JURASSIC PARK - kind of a bloody/carnage-y film. Basically sci-fi action, it's PG-13, nothing too traumatizing for older children (8-12), but, ya know, each kid is different...I don't agree 100% with the science, much of which is removed from the film, but aw heck, I still prefer the book over the film anyway...
INTERSTELLAR (2014) (not really a "dark" film, but doesn't really fit into the sweet category, even though it is lightly sentimental)
THE DARK KNIGHT TRILOGY (3 movies about the nature of justice as told through the journey of a man named Bruce Wayne)
(500) DAYS OF SUMMER (2008) A good love story, interesting presentation, kinda light and fluffy, but also a little sad in spots. The highs and lows of a relationship that didn't last forever and ever.
ALL THE REAL GIRLS (2003) an interesting premise; a guy who has a habit of breaking hearts falls in love for real and finds himself feeling guilty and thus not qualified to take her virginity...so he parades his virgin girlfriend around as a self-esteem booster, but reality catches up eventually.
12 ANGRY MEN (1957) - One of the few b&w films I enjoyed. A very intense presentation of a jury fighting for, and sometimes against, the rightful fate of a young man accused of murder.
FIGHT CLUB (a very grim movie, very philosophical, and I still don't know exactly what the point was)
TAXI DRIVR (1976) there's an Indian film from the '60's of the same name. This movie is very slow and brooding, but intense in its own quiet way.
THE EXORCIST (1973) - Again, prefer the original theatrical version over what is now being referred to as "The Extended Director's Cut", FKA "The Version You've Never Seen"...the newer one isn't gawdawful, it just strikes me as being needless and in some cases downright silly (what's with the demonic faces appearing on the wall as Ms. McNeil walks into her house after meeting with the neurologist? Ms. McNeil didn't even see them, so...ugh)
END OF DAYS (1999) - a very maligned but nonetheless eerie, explosive and appropriately sinister horror film with an Arnold Schwarzenegger action-hero slant) My favorite popcorn film of 1999 - the turn of the millennium, also the happiest days of my life, when the rest of the planet was seemingly watching the skies...
THE LOST WORLD: JURASSIC PARK (1997--1st sequel to JURASSIC PARK///A great popcorn flick, a fun instance of Steven Speilberg showing off his sadistic side)
Music
Anything by prog-rock-turned-prog-pop band Genesis (1967-1998) is good. I do prefer their last 3 CDs with Phil Collins as vocalist and drummer.
Oingo Boingo's 1st 2 CDs.
Various alternative rock CDs, most favored usually falling into the pop-punk/emo/metalcore genres.
CHVRCHES - The Bones Of What You Believe (damn, that's a good'un)
Michael W. Smith's SOVEREIGN
The Rocket Summer's LIFE WILL WRITE THE WORDS
AMERICAN FOOTBALL by American football (1999, Polyvinyl Record Co. release) (a killer album!)
Hidden In Plain View's farewell album 2007's RESOLUTION (Drive-Thru Records) (A high like no other)
THE REMOTE PART by Idlewild
---Ok, so I'm a little depressed. Sue me!
I don't read a lot, but these are books that I almost finished before either losing my place or taking so long getting through that I eventually said "f*** it" and ditched:
A GOOD AND HAPPY CHILD by Justin Evans
MY SISTER'S KEEPER by Jodi Picoult
and...there's others, I'm sure of it, but I'm not sure they qualify...either that or they aren't coming to mind...
MYSTIC RIVER contains so many thoughts/comments pertaining to this grim-ness of life that it becomes almost a joke.
SALEM FALLS by Jodi Picoult I didn't find any fault with, being a guy who spends all his days in his room by himself, but knowing that Jodi Picoult basically pulled this story out of her ass (see the reviews on Amazon) just makes me glad I didn't finish it. I actually returned it to the library b/c it was due and I couldn't renew it.
Books I ***DID*** finish are:
JURASSIC PARK by Dr. Michael Crichton
TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD by Harper Lee
MIDNIGHT IN THE GARDEN OF GOOD AND EVIL by John Berendt
UNHOLEY FIRE by Whitely Strieber
A bunch of Stephen King books, the ones that stand out most that I have gone back to and verified their richness are:
'SALEM'S LOT
THE DEAD ZONE
CUJO
PET SEMETARY
IT
As far as Snickers bars are concerned, there are good chocolate bars out there. I usually don't buy them b/c my cravings for chocolate are that of a heroin addict. My brain is wired to want it. Taste takes a back seat to the mental stimulant of eating uber-junk food. If I ever lose a good amount of weight (I'm at least 50 lbs overweight as I type this), then I can start buying quality fatness. But as things are, I need to stay away from it and I sure as heck don't need to spend exorberent amounts of money on it when I shouldn't be eating it in the first place!!! It's like spending money to watch porn. Which sadly I've done in the past, but that was before I discovered the several dozen handfuls of "YouTube of porn"s.
Uh...ok...this post has taken a bit of a sour turn...
EK:/I have no other interests. Politics? It's like watching a real life chainsaw massacre. Clothing? Uh...fashion is only good if you can pay for it. All I can afford are shirts that express a thought or feeling I have and stuff found in the bargain bins at Target. There certainly isn't much to talk about when it comes to clothing. It's for the eyes, not the eardrums or the mouths that pour into them. And sports is just too arbitrary. Here's a concept for a game where the rules are there for a reason and you are too: Arrive at a specified location, completing a series of tasks that are requested of you and then at the 5 days of completing these tasks, you get $200 to spend on whatever you want to spend it on!
Thank you, Seth at Yahoo! Answers...
Some guy going by the name of Conard Phelps has an entire series of "Hilarious Book of Mems and Jokes". I stumbled upon THE HILARIOUS BOOK OF GHOSTBUSTERS MEMES AND JOKES by this guy and was trying to figure out if he had permission to **PUBLISH** the GHOSTBUSTERS logo like he did (it's an e-book, there's no physical copy as far as I can tell), and although I found absolutely nothing to confirm or deny any piracy, I did suddenly start wondering "What the hell is a meme?"
I found a profile for some guy yesterday and his profile stated "Obviously I like memes". Uh...it's onl obvious if you know what a "meme" is and you would only know what a meme is if you use Facebook, which is about as useful as reality TV. I don't have much if any respect for local or national news as it is presented on TV, either. It's important to know weather or not the Antichrist has arrived so you can be prepared to stand up and reject The Mark he intends to put on everyone, but if you think it's just a fairytale then you have **ZERO** need to watch the news. It's mostly carnage and gossip. From 1988 on 'til now, The People of this nation have been electing criminals into office. People don't know this because they don't care. So the political landscape is not likely to change. The GOP primary will probably be won by another dumbass like Mitt Romney or some jackass like John McCain. And then there's Hilary Clinton. People think she's wonderful. She's not. She and her husband are partners in crime. It's hard to **PROVE** anything when a witness ends up dead.
http://www.stewwebb.com/Hillary_Clinton_Murders_March_27_2007.htm
https://video.search.yahoo.com/video/play;_ylt=A0LEV7xTYmNVkwQA7axjmolQ;_ylu=X3oDMTBsa3ZzMnBvBHNlYwNzYwRjb2xvA2JmMQR2dGlkAw--?p=george+h.w.+bush+drug+dealer&tnr=21&vid=74BAE9F2A03832F7FAA074BAE9F2A03832F7FAA0&l=227&turl=http%3A%2F%2Fts3.mm.bing.net%2Fth%3Fid%3DWN.ExmSN8Qdt9YNbqtadHZ0Rw%26pid%3D15.1&sigi=11vicgsjg&rurl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3D0Hl5zt3MvzE&sigr=11bbeg8ub&tt=b&tit=Is+the+CIA+Involved+in+Drug+Trafficking%3F+%26quot%3BI+think+George+...&sigt=121qa9065&back=https%3A%2F%2Fsearch.yahoo.com%2Fyhs%2Fsearch%3Fp%3Dgeorge%2Bh.w.%2Bbush%2Bdrug%2Bdealer%26vm%3Dp%26param1%3D435706%26param2%3D0%26param3%3D8%26param4%3D394248513%26hsimp%3Dyhs-prodege_001%26hspart%3Dprodege%26fr%3Dyhs-prodege-prodege_001%26ei%3DUTF-8&sigb=161q7gkhb&hspart=prodege&hsimp=yhs-prodege_001&vm=p
http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/taliban-held-us-soldier-released-in-exchange-for-afghan-detainees/2014/05/31/8b764dac-e8db-11e3-a86b-362fd5443d19_story.html
I'm sure Reagan has some stuff he'd rather people not know, but I'm not intending to provide a comprehensive history of U.S. presidents who are horrendously corrupt. I'm just saying politics is treated like a game and the evils that the members of congress have committed far outweigh the good they've accomplished. What I **really** don't get is people piss on each other and then talk about "gun laws". SERIOULSY? If you want guns to quit killing people, GET RID OF THE HATE! Hate breeds hate. Guns don't kill people. Guns are inanimate objects that **PEOPLE** make and use. The reason people use guns to kill people, yes, they're an easy to use method, but if there were no hatred and humanity's love amongst itself were in the necessary supply, why would anybody die of a gunshot? Yes, there's toddlers who accidentally pick up a gun and pull the trigger. Stuff like that is an "Honest Mistake". Just like assuming that the guy whose standing on a podium running for president isn't a mass murderer....
There is one thing that needs to happen, regardless of whose to blame for the Federal Gov'ts budget deficit (it's 2/3 Obama and 1/3 Bush, BTW): Taxes need to go up. And the Affordable Health Care Act needs to be repealed, at least temporarily. Obama has spent way too much money using Air Force One willy nilly and W. has spent way too much money trying to engage in combat with shadows. Until we have enough tax dollars to fund what we've already spent and pay off the interest its cost us, we cannot afford the "Affordable Health Care" that Obama and all the low wage work force members so desperately need (although Obama doesn't *need* affordable health care, he just *wants* it b/c it will make him look good). Seriously, there is no serious thought that goes into this notion that nothing bad will happen if we
spend x4
pay x1
spend x5
pay 1
spend 8
pay 2
spend 12
pay 2.75
etc.
This nation will need to foreclose if this keeps up. Just like a house that isn't being paid for, the lender will come and claim what is theirs. We made a small-medium size dent in the deficit with the sequester, but now Obama's talking about ending it. I don't think he's actually talk**ing** about it, but he did propose it on TV a few months ago...I don't think it will happen with Republicans controlling both the house and the senate.
So anyway. I'm sure Facebook is entertaining and all. I just think it's stupid and annoying. Kind of like Snickers bars. Or reality TV. Or Britney Spears. Damn it. I'm gonna have to follow this up with a list of things I **DO** like to quell the perceived notion that I hate everything...as if an emotionally compelling **MOVIE** is just too much for people to take in...seriously ppl? Does FORREST GUMP not strike your fancy? You'd rather watch DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES or SURVIVOR? Oh, and I do like chocolate, btw. I just don't think Snickers or Milky Way is worth the money it costs. You pay 3x more for much better chocolate and yes you buy less of it, but who needs all those calories and fat grams + sugar anyway? 2 or 3 big high quality chocolate bars in the span of a month is the very most the average consumer needs to have anyway. Oh, and I do like fun music. I just don't like stupid music. Britney Spears' initials pretty much sum up the entirety of her back catalogue.
To sum up Facebook, reality TV, low budget junk food, and exotic dancers that "also" sing in the words of the Brilliant Detective Sherlock Holmes himself:
"The full spectrum of commerce and communication flows through her optic fibers as well as the requisite glut of pornography and cat videos."
So HA!
***
I found a profile for some guy yesterday and his profile stated "Obviously I like memes". Uh...it's onl obvious if you know what a "meme" is and you would only know what a meme is if you use Facebook, which is about as useful as reality TV. I don't have much if any respect for local or national news as it is presented on TV, either. It's important to know weather or not the Antichrist has arrived so you can be prepared to stand up and reject The Mark he intends to put on everyone, but if you think it's just a fairytale then you have **ZERO** need to watch the news. It's mostly carnage and gossip. From 1988 on 'til now, The People of this nation have been electing criminals into office. People don't know this because they don't care. So the political landscape is not likely to change. The GOP primary will probably be won by another dumbass like Mitt Romney or some jackass like John McCain. And then there's Hilary Clinton. People think she's wonderful. She's not. She and her husband are partners in crime. It's hard to **PROVE** anything when a witness ends up dead.
http://www.stewwebb.com/Hillary_Clinton_Murders_March_27_2007.htm
https://video.search.yahoo.com/video/play;_ylt=A0LEV7xTYmNVkwQA7axjmolQ;_ylu=X3oDMTBsa3ZzMnBvBHNlYwNzYwRjb2xvA2JmMQR2dGlkAw--?p=george+h.w.+bush+drug+dealer&tnr=21&vid=74BAE9F2A03832F7FAA074BAE9F2A03832F7FAA0&l=227&turl=http%3A%2F%2Fts3.mm.bing.net%2Fth%3Fid%3DWN.ExmSN8Qdt9YNbqtadHZ0Rw%26pid%3D15.1&sigi=11vicgsjg&rurl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3D0Hl5zt3MvzE&sigr=11bbeg8ub&tt=b&tit=Is+the+CIA+Involved+in+Drug+Trafficking%3F+%26quot%3BI+think+George+...&sigt=121qa9065&back=https%3A%2F%2Fsearch.yahoo.com%2Fyhs%2Fsearch%3Fp%3Dgeorge%2Bh.w.%2Bbush%2Bdrug%2Bdealer%26vm%3Dp%26param1%3D435706%26param2%3D0%26param3%3D8%26param4%3D394248513%26hsimp%3Dyhs-prodege_001%26hspart%3Dprodege%26fr%3Dyhs-prodege-prodege_001%26ei%3DUTF-8&sigb=161q7gkhb&hspart=prodege&hsimp=yhs-prodege_001&vm=p
http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/taliban-held-us-soldier-released-in-exchange-for-afghan-detainees/2014/05/31/8b764dac-e8db-11e3-a86b-362fd5443d19_story.html
I'm sure Reagan has some stuff he'd rather people not know, but I'm not intending to provide a comprehensive history of U.S. presidents who are horrendously corrupt. I'm just saying politics is treated like a game and the evils that the members of congress have committed far outweigh the good they've accomplished. What I **really** don't get is people piss on each other and then talk about "gun laws". SERIOULSY? If you want guns to quit killing people, GET RID OF THE HATE! Hate breeds hate. Guns don't kill people. Guns are inanimate objects that **PEOPLE** make and use. The reason people use guns to kill people, yes, they're an easy to use method, but if there were no hatred and humanity's love amongst itself were in the necessary supply, why would anybody die of a gunshot? Yes, there's toddlers who accidentally pick up a gun and pull the trigger. Stuff like that is an "Honest Mistake". Just like assuming that the guy whose standing on a podium running for president isn't a mass murderer....
There is one thing that needs to happen, regardless of whose to blame for the Federal Gov'ts budget deficit (it's 2/3 Obama and 1/3 Bush, BTW): Taxes need to go up. And the Affordable Health Care Act needs to be repealed, at least temporarily. Obama has spent way too much money using Air Force One willy nilly and W. has spent way too much money trying to engage in combat with shadows. Until we have enough tax dollars to fund what we've already spent and pay off the interest its cost us, we cannot afford the "Affordable Health Care" that Obama and all the low wage work force members so desperately need (although Obama doesn't *need* affordable health care, he just *wants* it b/c it will make him look good). Seriously, there is no serious thought that goes into this notion that nothing bad will happen if we
spend x4
pay x1
spend x5
pay 1
spend 8
pay 2
spend 12
pay 2.75
etc.
This nation will need to foreclose if this keeps up. Just like a house that isn't being paid for, the lender will come and claim what is theirs. We made a small-medium size dent in the deficit with the sequester, but now Obama's talking about ending it. I don't think he's actually talk**ing** about it, but he did propose it on TV a few months ago...I don't think it will happen with Republicans controlling both the house and the senate.
So anyway. I'm sure Facebook is entertaining and all. I just think it's stupid and annoying. Kind of like Snickers bars. Or reality TV. Or Britney Spears. Damn it. I'm gonna have to follow this up with a list of things I **DO** like to quell the perceived notion that I hate everything...as if an emotionally compelling **MOVIE** is just too much for people to take in...seriously ppl? Does FORREST GUMP not strike your fancy? You'd rather watch DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES or SURVIVOR? Oh, and I do like chocolate, btw. I just don't think Snickers or Milky Way is worth the money it costs. You pay 3x more for much better chocolate and yes you buy less of it, but who needs all those calories and fat grams + sugar anyway? 2 or 3 big high quality chocolate bars in the span of a month is the very most the average consumer needs to have anyway. Oh, and I do like fun music. I just don't like stupid music. Britney Spears' initials pretty much sum up the entirety of her back catalogue.
To sum up Facebook, reality TV, low budget junk food, and exotic dancers that "also" sing in the words of the Brilliant Detective Sherlock Holmes himself:
"The full spectrum of commerce and communication flows through her optic fibers as well as the requisite glut of pornography and cat videos."
So HA!
***
Sunday, May 24, 2015
It's all in how you play...
It's interesting how two different YouTube video creators have two completely opposite views on the awesome-ness quotient of THE REAL GHOSTBUSTERS Firehouse Headquarters released by Kenner in 1987.
This guy I get the impression was around 3 or 4(?) when the toys were released (1986/1987). I wasn't even that old, myself...He proclaims the Firehouse Playset is *THE BEST* playset *EVER*. I never played with playsets, period...I had the action figures, I *think* I had the Ecto-1, I know I had the Ecto-1A, but I did not have any playsets, except the GHOSTBUSTERS Play-Doh set if you count that as one...but given the content of the review posted *below*, I think *maybe* that's why I'm able to say, objectively, that the truth lies not in that statement...as much as I would choose the FHHQ over a G.I. Joe or STAR WARS playset, from a useability perspective, FHHQ does not fit the bill of BEST PLAYSET EVER.
The man of RetroBlasing who guides this review states he was 8 years old and apparently played too rough with his toys and, as I remember, being 8 years old was not as innocent as being 4 years old. His complaints make sense, but part of the joy of being a kid is that you don't have silly preconceived notions about things that get in the way of life's joy. Speaking directly from my own experience, as exaggerated as it was...the lack of joy and my expectations of life clashing to the point of having to be hospitalized in a psychiatric ward and all...
Anyhow; thought I'd post that. If nothing else, amateur/wannabe child psychologists can maybe chew on this a bit.
This guy I get the impression was around 3 or 4(?) when the toys were released (1986/1987). I wasn't even that old, myself...He proclaims the Firehouse Playset is *THE BEST* playset *EVER*. I never played with playsets, period...I had the action figures, I *think* I had the Ecto-1, I know I had the Ecto-1A, but I did not have any playsets, except the GHOSTBUSTERS Play-Doh set if you count that as one...but given the content of the review posted *below*, I think *maybe* that's why I'm able to say, objectively, that the truth lies not in that statement...as much as I would choose the FHHQ over a G.I. Joe or STAR WARS playset, from a useability perspective, FHHQ does not fit the bill of BEST PLAYSET EVER.
Anyhow; thought I'd post that. If nothing else, amateur/wannabe child psychologists can maybe chew on this a bit.
Thursday, May 21, 2015
sleeping in public...is illegal?
I wonder how many people have to sleep in the street because they were fired from their job amongst all the other thousands if not millions of people companies decided they didn't need...seems like a lawsuit in the making, except you need a lawyer to argue your point in a manner that a judge can legally acknowledge...and lawyers cost a ridiculous sum of $. It'd be a hand over fist profit if someone had the money to do that, but nobody does. Time spent in court eats at the time you could spend at work or looking for a job. It's illegal to steal the money, it's illegal to make your own money, even if it's in a different currency, but if nobody's willing to hire you, it's not an automatic win to say "I HAVE TO SLEEP SOMEWHERE!".
Aaaaaa!
I mean, why is it a crime to begin with? Sleep is natural, it is necessary, it's not condemned by any religion I'm aware of, there's absolutely NOTHING WRONG with sleep. So why is doing it in front of everybody illegal? I seriously don't get it.
Aaaaaa!
I mean, why is it a crime to begin with? Sleep is natural, it is necessary, it's not condemned by any religion I'm aware of, there's absolutely NOTHING WRONG with sleep. So why is doing it in front of everybody illegal? I seriously don't get it.
Monday, May 18, 2015
There is no Lauren Mayberry, only ZVVL
I just out that the band Chvrches have a song called "Zuul", except, just like their band name, the song is spelled "Zvvl". So...when I was looking to see the contents of the RECOVER E.P., I was like "WHAT?!" then moved on...I thought maybe it was some African or German word that English speaking non-multi-linguals aren't meant to pronounce...but then I saw an interview with Lauren Mayberry and Ian Cook where Lauren Mayberry cited a fan yelling out "There is no Dana, only Zuul!", and judging by the wording of the answer (?; not sure who compiled the questions...), I'm assuming that the title of the song was indeed taken from GHOSTBUSTERS.
Rock on, CHVRCHES!
Rock on, CHVRCHES!
Cameron Crowe has big plans for China
Two pieces of mail I had been expecting to be delivered today have the same status they did two days ago. They're in St. Louis, which is only a 1.5 hr drive from where I live, so I don't know what the hold up is. I was thinking maybe today was Memorial Day, even though the bulletin at the church said it was the 23rd or 22nd or something...turns out there is no USPS holiday that falls on today, May 18, 2015.
However, I did find this interesting bit of info...
http://www.usps-holidays.com/p/whe.html
The humor comes at the bottom of the page, where every letter is presented in BOLD. It makes more sense to wonder if "singles day" is a USPS Holiday than it does to wonder if Cyber Monday is a USPS Holiday...I see that note under the list of USPS observed holidays and I go "WHAT?!". But then again Black Friday is also on there, which I don't get either...if black Friday had ever been a USPS observed holiday, I could see the USPS trading it out for Cyber Monday, but that would also make no sense since mail men can shop with their smartphones during a lull in the day (or lunch break...) and still get paid. Seriously, people! A national day of shopping? At least Christmas is disguised as being a day to "celebrate Christ's birthday". Which for avid shoppers I guess was a bit of a downer before the internet came widely available, but now that it's so easy to access the internet, (and more or less affordable), you can drive by boarded up stores AND shop till you drop! Unless you drop easily, that's not possible for most brick & mortar stores, btw, since they usually close no later than 10pm. WalMart and a handful of other retailers regional and otherwise are open 24/7, not quite but almost 365 days a year, but I for one despise WalMart. They treat their employees like dirt and play dirty to buck the competition. I don't trust Target infinitely more, now more than ever since that data breach that could have been prevented, but I do trust them somewhat more than WalMart and I've always liked shopping there a lot more than WalMart.
But as I was saying, shopping 'til you drop at a brick & mortar store is for the weak. Amazon.com's doors are never closed. (Ditto for WalMart.com and Target.com, fyi...I prefer Amazon over all of 'em, but maybe I'm ignorant of a very good reason not to prefer Amazon over the rest...which wouldn't too terribly surprise me, since I don't really shop from them enough to have been burned by them very many if any times. I do hear what I perceive to be rather serious complaints about their PRIME shipping plan, which would be extremely worrisome to me if I needed anything to be delivered in two days tops & had signed up for Prime expecting that...)
However, I did find this interesting bit of info...
http://www.usps-holidays.com/p/whe.html
The humor comes at the bottom of the page, where every letter is presented in BOLD. It makes more sense to wonder if "singles day" is a USPS Holiday than it does to wonder if Cyber Monday is a USPS Holiday...I see that note under the list of USPS observed holidays and I go "WHAT?!". But then again Black Friday is also on there, which I don't get either...if black Friday had ever been a USPS observed holiday, I could see the USPS trading it out for Cyber Monday, but that would also make no sense since mail men can shop with their smartphones during a lull in the day (or lunch break...) and still get paid. Seriously, people! A national day of shopping? At least Christmas is disguised as being a day to "celebrate Christ's birthday". Which for avid shoppers I guess was a bit of a downer before the internet came widely available, but now that it's so easy to access the internet, (and more or less affordable), you can drive by boarded up stores AND shop till you drop! Unless you drop easily, that's not possible for most brick & mortar stores, btw, since they usually close no later than 10pm. WalMart and a handful of other retailers regional and otherwise are open 24/7, not quite but almost 365 days a year, but I for one despise WalMart. They treat their employees like dirt and play dirty to buck the competition. I don't trust Target infinitely more, now more than ever since that data breach that could have been prevented, but I do trust them somewhat more than WalMart and I've always liked shopping there a lot more than WalMart.
But as I was saying, shopping 'til you drop at a brick & mortar store is for the weak. Amazon.com's doors are never closed. (Ditto for WalMart.com and Target.com, fyi...I prefer Amazon over all of 'em, but maybe I'm ignorant of a very good reason not to prefer Amazon over the rest...which wouldn't too terribly surprise me, since I don't really shop from them enough to have been burned by them very many if any times. I do hear what I perceive to be rather serious complaints about their PRIME shipping plan, which would be extremely worrisome to me if I needed anything to be delivered in two days tops & had signed up for Prime expecting that...)
Friday, May 15, 2015
Value Of Nothing
I don't have a date tonight, nor tomorrow night. I'm not intending to hand out food to starving villages in Africa or study to be a doctor or a nurse. If those are the only things that make a person worthy of not being euthanized, just kill me now.
My lust for life could be confused with my abundance of optimism. However, I find my days are often uneventful to the T and I am often very disappointed in this fact. Music and movies don't light my life like they used to and I have not adopted any friends or other interests over the years.
On the other hand, I am often angry. Nobody seems to comprehend the reasons for it. So, on the contrary, my lust for life could be confused as being non existent.
I always hope things will come along and make me happy. I don't plan for them. They come by on accident 99% of the time.
If all of these things make me worthless, then kill me now.
If I am not worthless, then I do not expect to be dragged around, tied down and forced to wade through untold hours of boredom. If you have no interest in doing me a favor, then say so. If you have any interest in doing me a favor so long as a punishment for my not having a date tonight is included, then I do not want it.
My lust for life could be confused with my abundance of optimism. However, I find my days are often uneventful to the T and I am often very disappointed in this fact. Music and movies don't light my life like they used to and I have not adopted any friends or other interests over the years.
On the other hand, I am often angry. Nobody seems to comprehend the reasons for it. So, on the contrary, my lust for life could be confused as being non existent.
I always hope things will come along and make me happy. I don't plan for them. They come by on accident 99% of the time.
If all of these things make me worthless, then kill me now.
If I am not worthless, then I do not expect to be dragged around, tied down and forced to wade through untold hours of boredom. If you have no interest in doing me a favor, then say so. If you have any interest in doing me a favor so long as a punishment for my not having a date tonight is included, then I do not want it.
Wednesday, May 13, 2015
Alan Soble's vision for Skynet (?)
I kept thinking about the phrase I kept hearing as a teenager "Women aren't objects".
I was reading Lauren Mayberry of CHVRCHES' social commentary published in THE GUARDIAN (surprisingly you don't need to pay to read it), and some of the comments and one person used the term "objectification", and I did a web search for the word and according to Wikipedia, the definitions of the term, apparently invented by philosophers, correspond to what I've been taught about how to be nice and treat people respectfully.
For some reason, this quote by Alan Soble was include as an argument for one of the Wikipedia-referenced philosophers: "The claim that we should treat people as ‘persons’ and not dehumanise them is to reify, is to anthropomorphise humans and consider them more than they are. Do not treat people as objects, we are told. Why not? Because, goes the answer, people qua persons deserve not to be treated as objects. What a nice bit of illusory chauvinism. People are not as grand as we make them out to be, would like them to be, or hope them to be"
I had to do a web search for the definition of "reify" ("Here's your sign"). Anyway; the sentiment makes perfect sense. However, I don't think a person's utility should be reduced to a sex doll. I think we all have utility. We as people, pieces and wholes, have the ability to serve and the right thing to do is to use those abilities. A world of entirely self serving people is vile. I admit I'm a lot more self serving than ideally I should be. I've posted about that in the past. Anything further would require my psychiatrist's input, which I haven't asked for (she has a heavy Indian accent, which makes it nearly impossible to understand the answers to the questions I do ask her, plus she's very busy and very underpaid. From a religious standpoint, I don't know if she'd be any help anyway, because her job is to treat illness via RX, not prevent or cure it...).
I was reading Lauren Mayberry of CHVRCHES' social commentary published in THE GUARDIAN (surprisingly you don't need to pay to read it), and some of the comments and one person used the term "objectification", and I did a web search for the word and according to Wikipedia, the definitions of the term, apparently invented by philosophers, correspond to what I've been taught about how to be nice and treat people respectfully.
For some reason, this quote by Alan Soble was include as an argument for one of the Wikipedia-referenced philosophers: "The claim that we should treat people as ‘persons’ and not dehumanise them is to reify, is to anthropomorphise humans and consider them more than they are. Do not treat people as objects, we are told. Why not? Because, goes the answer, people qua persons deserve not to be treated as objects. What a nice bit of illusory chauvinism. People are not as grand as we make them out to be, would like them to be, or hope them to be"
I had to do a web search for the definition of "reify" ("Here's your sign"). Anyway; the sentiment makes perfect sense. However, I don't think a person's utility should be reduced to a sex doll. I think we all have utility. We as people, pieces and wholes, have the ability to serve and the right thing to do is to use those abilities. A world of entirely self serving people is vile. I admit I'm a lot more self serving than ideally I should be. I've posted about that in the past. Anything further would require my psychiatrist's input, which I haven't asked for (she has a heavy Indian accent, which makes it nearly impossible to understand the answers to the questions I do ask her, plus she's very busy and very underpaid. From a religious standpoint, I don't know if she'd be any help anyway, because her job is to treat illness via RX, not prevent or cure it...).
A petition of mercy for Ernie Hudson...
His dismay over the female GB reboot was over the proposal. He probably thought "oh, dumb gimmick", but now that it's shown to actually be happening and it's going forward, one can only hope it's as good as it should be. This is explained in an on the spot interview by TMZ seen here:
As for fans' raving about how bad Paul Feig is, I personally don't think BRIDESMAIDS and GHOSTBUSTERS go well together, which is maybe why Dan Aykroyd and Ivan Reitman are there, so if Paul Feig needs any advice or has any questions, they can help. Hopefully they'll also be authorized to tweak the script to tailor it more to the universe that Reitman and Aykroyd (along with Ramis) had envisioned more than 30 years ago. I didn't think an all female GB was a smart move either, but the more I think about it, the more I've accepted it and am hoping for the best. If Ernie Hudson were a screenwriter, I'd brand him a hypocrite, but his job, like any other actor, is to be a screenwriter's puppet. If the screenwriter says "jump", the actor jumps. Some intuition is preferable, but requires good acting and not just acting school acting, not that Ernie Hudson isn't a well seasoned actor, that's just a side statement, my point is actors are not hired for their creative input. That is the job of the scribe and the director. Imagination et al are not required to be part of an actor's resume. So when some actor or guy on the street says female GB is a bad idea, even seeing that Paul Fieg is dedicated to making a genuine/good quality film, they are not the final word on the matter. The final word is when it's done and the film is seen and heard. That's not to say I'm confident it will be good. I don't expect Hollywood to do anything right because they seldom do. And yes, the original was perfect and they should leave it alone. I haven't heard any plans to George Lucas-ize it, so fans have nothing to worry about in that regard as far as I'm aware.
As far as the old criticism that Hollywood is nothing but sequels and re-makes, I say a good re-make is better than an original idea sewn together by a talentless hack. I can sew a pair of pants. But they'll need another sewing soon after. A good mender or tailor can make something that will last a lifetime. Art may go through phases, new things will arise and light the world in amazement, but only the most shallow people can look at a classic work of art and slam it for not being "in". How may "original ideas" that Hollywood has put out over the last 20+ years stood the test of time? How many of them truly captivated and excited people that aren't in grade school? Probably not the best examples, but the label of "re-make" being there didn't didn't stop LAST HOUSE ON THE LEFT, THE HILLS HAVE EYES, and...um...others (my mind is a little fogged at the moment, I'm sure there's less icky and better quality examples...) from being somewhat original in their execution and striking people as works of art all of their own. The problem with Hollywood IS: the disposability of so much of its output - it's like music on vinyl vs CD or Coke-A-Cola in glass vs. plastic; the tried and true methods can certainly be altered if it feels right, but when money is the sole motivator and the word "art" becomes almost a dirty word, you lose out. Coke in plastic tastes OK and CDs sound just fine if you're listening to them on a budget sound system, or even an "audiophile on a budget" sound system with less than impeccable hearing, but to see where Hollywood was and is now, it's just sad. The newcomers of the world who didn't see a lot of the good films that came out in the late '50's- early '80's have no idea what they're missing.
As far as the old criticism that Hollywood is nothing but sequels and re-makes, I say a good re-make is better than an original idea sewn together by a talentless hack. I can sew a pair of pants. But they'll need another sewing soon after. A good mender or tailor can make something that will last a lifetime. Art may go through phases, new things will arise and light the world in amazement, but only the most shallow people can look at a classic work of art and slam it for not being "in". How may "original ideas" that Hollywood has put out over the last 20+ years stood the test of time? How many of them truly captivated and excited people that aren't in grade school? Probably not the best examples, but the label of "re-make" being there didn't didn't stop LAST HOUSE ON THE LEFT, THE HILLS HAVE EYES, and...um...others (my mind is a little fogged at the moment, I'm sure there's less icky and better quality examples...) from being somewhat original in their execution and striking people as works of art all of their own. The problem with Hollywood IS: the disposability of so much of its output - it's like music on vinyl vs CD or Coke-A-Cola in glass vs. plastic; the tried and true methods can certainly be altered if it feels right, but when money is the sole motivator and the word "art" becomes almost a dirty word, you lose out. Coke in plastic tastes OK and CDs sound just fine if you're listening to them on a budget sound system, or even an "audiophile on a budget" sound system with less than impeccable hearing, but to see where Hollywood was and is now, it's just sad. The newcomers of the world who didn't see a lot of the good films that came out in the late '50's- early '80's have no idea what they're missing.
Saturday, May 9, 2015
Internet 101 -- "It's like pure concentrated evil!?"
I was reminiscing about the way Michael Jackson used to make me feel when he was fad, but then my internet started scheming against me and all desire and hope has left me...the moral here is: grunge killed Michael Jackson.
Friday, May 8, 2015
Is HOT PURSUIT that bad or...IS it REEALLY that bad?
Rotten tomatoes' sampling of 67 critics says HOT PURSUIT, this year's comedy starring Reese Witherspoon and some actress I've never heard of but looks a little familiar..., surmises that if you like this movie then you're a freakin' weirdo. SIX PERCENT of them like it.
Rotten Tomatoes sampling of 32 critics say Kevin Costner's breathtaking epic THE POSTMAN, by now pushing 20 years, is a steaming pile of crap. Only 2 of the critics listed have anything good to say about it.
Is this new film another lazy attempt by Hollywood to push something out and hope to make some money off of it or is it one of those off instances where the film studio wants someone fired so they create an excuse to get it done by tainting critics perspective of a movie by telling them that it stinks before they see it?
Not sure if I'm allowed to do this, but here's what an Amazon.com customer going by the name(username) of Thomas Plotkin posted as a "comment" on one of the Amazon customer reviews for THE POSTMAN (1997)
"Always distrust film critics when they behave like a herd to kill a movie -- usually the response has been orchestrated by the studio itself, mainstream critics' true masters, who for political reasons seek to sabotage their own product and punish errant employees (head of production set up for ouster, director whose development deal has become burdensome) by starting whispering campaigns that a film is a dog pre-release, predisposing the geniuses in the press to echo them, Pavlov-style. No-one is lazier than a mainstream journalist, and the folks on the arts beat are the worst offenders of all."
So.......if I were to risk being accused of inciting illegal activity, I might suggest "borrowing" the movie, then paying for it, either rent it for the standard price that most video stores charge for it, or, if you got buckoos of money, maybe buy it at Amazon or Target for the full $15+? If you wanna rent it at Redbox, it's your $1.50's funeral...it sucks that Hollywood is forcing me to hesitate renting movies that I would otherwise feel fine renting, because video stores, some of them well meaning operations, have no recourse but to take the bullet with the film studios that put out this junk.
Oh well. I guess time will tell.
Rotten Tomatoes sampling of 32 critics say Kevin Costner's breathtaking epic THE POSTMAN, by now pushing 20 years, is a steaming pile of crap. Only 2 of the critics listed have anything good to say about it.
Is this new film another lazy attempt by Hollywood to push something out and hope to make some money off of it or is it one of those off instances where the film studio wants someone fired so they create an excuse to get it done by tainting critics perspective of a movie by telling them that it stinks before they see it?
Not sure if I'm allowed to do this, but here's what an Amazon.com customer going by the name(username) of Thomas Plotkin posted as a "comment" on one of the Amazon customer reviews for THE POSTMAN (1997)
"Always distrust film critics when they behave like a herd to kill a movie -- usually the response has been orchestrated by the studio itself, mainstream critics' true masters, who for political reasons seek to sabotage their own product and punish errant employees (head of production set up for ouster, director whose development deal has become burdensome) by starting whispering campaigns that a film is a dog pre-release, predisposing the geniuses in the press to echo them, Pavlov-style. No-one is lazier than a mainstream journalist, and the folks on the arts beat are the worst offenders of all."
So.......if I were to risk being accused of inciting illegal activity, I might suggest "borrowing" the movie, then paying for it, either rent it for the standard price that most video stores charge for it, or, if you got buckoos of money, maybe buy it at Amazon or Target for the full $15+? If you wanna rent it at Redbox, it's your $1.50's funeral...it sucks that Hollywood is forcing me to hesitate renting movies that I would otherwise feel fine renting, because video stores, some of them well meaning operations, have no recourse but to take the bullet with the film studios that put out this junk.
Oh well. I guess time will tell.
Wednesday, May 6, 2015
No Use For His Claws
I had this crazy disturbing dream last night. It started with the premise that me and my mom had been using small pieces of my sister's cat Bear to make coffee with, 'cause, ya know, it's a fact that cats taste like coffee...--that's sarcasm, btw: DON'T DO THAT! (I would put that in parenthesis, but I don't want someone who may indeed find that bit of information helpful to skip it b/c it's in parenthesis). And then I got lazy and just decided to heat Bear in the microwave, not knowing or forgetting temporarily that animals can't survive in the microwave. At the 10 second mark, I saw what I thought was pain(dying?), but was unsure weather or not to take him out because I didn't know if was too late...weather or not I'd have successfully made a cup of coffee I can't imagine even having been a concern by that point...I guess it was about the 30 second mark, I was yelling for my mom's presence & medical knowledge (knowledge in general...I don't use my brain for practical purposes much).
It was a really disturbing dream not just because he wasn't my cat to cook, but also knowing how sweet Bear is. He's not big enough to fit in a microwave (either that or "the dream microwave" was a lot bigger than the one we actually own), in the dream he was the size of a piece of chicken, as if he never grew out of his kittenhood.
Hmm...
It was a really disturbing dream not just because he wasn't my cat to cook, but also knowing how sweet Bear is. He's not big enough to fit in a microwave (either that or "the dream microwave" was a lot bigger than the one we actually own), in the dream he was the size of a piece of chicken, as if he never grew out of his kittenhood.
Hmm...
Monday, May 4, 2015
18 and i like it
I have $18 left for the remainder of the month...yes, I know that's Bill Gates cast as a homeless man money, and yes I know I still have 26 days to the month. I mean, I have more than that, but $10 goes to milk (in theory, it ultimately depends on how fast I go through the current gallon), as well as $4 for pancake mix, $4 for pharmacy co-pay, $2 for dr co-pay (I have a check-up for my asthma stuff on the 14th), and a few other dollars here and there...as for stuff I "Just gotta have" but don't know I need or want yet, $18 is for that.
I almost bought E.T.: THE EXTRA-TERRESTRIAL on digibook BD/DVD combo for the 2nd time. As for the total # of times I'd owned the 30TH Anniversary Edition of E.T. on any particular form, the total # of times is at least 3. This would have been 4. I cancelled the order before it was charged to my card. The digibook is noteworthy for having the same cover-art design as the original 1988 VHS (The movie came to theaters in 1982, but Speilberg didn't think it was right to put it on video, or something...). Also, there's a nearly identical item, except I'm sure the barcode is different - it was a BestBuy exclusive back when the 30th A.E. first came out in late 2012. This one I'm referring to was released summer 2013. I ended up buying it from Sears dot com b/c I had some points and they weren't charging an arm and a leg for it like a lot of retailers were at the time. CDBaron at Amazon is offering it for under $9 w/ S&H in "used - like new" condition. I've ordered from CD Baron in the past and they've almost always disappointed me with their understanding of that grade. It might be in OK condition if I received it in the mail from them, but I'd be very surprised. Aside from eating up half of what I have left, I just don't want it that badly. I've bought the 30th A.E. of E.T. BRAND NEW twice already. I don't see any personal gain from buying it again. Universal Studios and Amblin Entertainment have already gotten their share of my wallet's contents past and present. The future may be another story if they give me something I haven't owned before that's equally worth it. Speaking of which, still looking forward to JURASSIC WORLD. As well as TERMINATOR GENISYS (did I spell that right? Does it matter?) I'm a little hesitant about T1v2(?)/T5 (what exactly is this film? A reboot? No? A sequel to T-SALVATION or.......????), b/c apparently John Connor is the bad guy...? Maybe there's more than meets the eye...idk...
Netflix has THE EXORCIST on streaming finally once again. It's the original version without all the gimmicky visuals and re-mixing...I missed church yesterday b/c I woke up at 4am and felt like I'd pass out any minute by 9:45A.M. So I called my ride (Gramma) and told her not to come pick me up and laid down and took forever falling asleep. When I finally did, I woke up 40 some odd minutes later (!!!!!). I'm mostly caught up I think...I still went to bed at 10:30 or so last night and woke up at 5am, but I got a couple hours of sleep around 7:30-9:15 (not exactly two hours, but somewhat close enough).
I had THE EXORCIST playing while I was asleep. The cinematography in that film is so comforting. I guess I'm morbid. Well, I know I am. I'd like to think there was some way of rising above all the muck of my personal interests, but I don't think there is...maybe if I had enough love and appreciation in my heart, I'd be courageous enough to step up and do something bold on the name of God and that would erode my morbidity (woah, spell check didn't see anything wrong with that? I didn't know for sure if that was a real word...heh, could have been goofy and said "morbidicity"...)
Anyway.
With $18 in my pocket and the pressure of Sunday morning and evening and sleep vs. no sleep etc. etc., idk...I feel pretty good today. Me and my mom went to Starbucks this afternoon and then I got a few groceries from Schnucks and ALDI, then we got some dog food for my mom's two doggies. I'm not entirely sure, but I think we'll be OK on cat food the remainder of the month. I got a Michael W. Smith CD coming the mail. It's titled WONDER. I also own SOVEREIGN, which is a really good CD. I like the style and the melodious of it. I only have like 20 or 30 CDS, the only other Christian CD if LIFE WILL RIGHT THE WORDS by The Rocket Summer. If this MWS CD doesn't look like someone threw up on it, that'll make #3. If it looks like trash, I'm not keeping it. You just never know with Hastings Entertainment / GoHastings dotcom; sometimes I buy from them in their brick and mortar store in Cape Gr., MO and b/c they put this thick cellophane on their used merchandise, it's hard to tell if the item is in the condition I'd like it to be in. But buying on their website, it's almost impossible. Asking CS doesn't help.
Not sure what else to say. Guess I'll end it here. G'day all!
God be with you.
I almost bought E.T.: THE EXTRA-TERRESTRIAL on digibook BD/DVD combo for the 2nd time. As for the total # of times I'd owned the 30TH Anniversary Edition of E.T. on any particular form, the total # of times is at least 3. This would have been 4. I cancelled the order before it was charged to my card. The digibook is noteworthy for having the same cover-art design as the original 1988 VHS (The movie came to theaters in 1982, but Speilberg didn't think it was right to put it on video, or something...). Also, there's a nearly identical item, except I'm sure the barcode is different - it was a BestBuy exclusive back when the 30th A.E. first came out in late 2012. This one I'm referring to was released summer 2013. I ended up buying it from Sears dot com b/c I had some points and they weren't charging an arm and a leg for it like a lot of retailers were at the time. CDBaron at Amazon is offering it for under $9 w/ S&H in "used - like new" condition. I've ordered from CD Baron in the past and they've almost always disappointed me with their understanding of that grade. It might be in OK condition if I received it in the mail from them, but I'd be very surprised. Aside from eating up half of what I have left, I just don't want it that badly. I've bought the 30th A.E. of E.T. BRAND NEW twice already. I don't see any personal gain from buying it again. Universal Studios and Amblin Entertainment have already gotten their share of my wallet's contents past and present. The future may be another story if they give me something I haven't owned before that's equally worth it. Speaking of which, still looking forward to JURASSIC WORLD. As well as TERMINATOR GENISYS (did I spell that right? Does it matter?) I'm a little hesitant about T1v2(?)/T5 (what exactly is this film? A reboot? No? A sequel to T-SALVATION or.......????), b/c apparently John Connor is the bad guy...? Maybe there's more than meets the eye...idk...
Netflix has THE EXORCIST on streaming finally once again. It's the original version without all the gimmicky visuals and re-mixing...I missed church yesterday b/c I woke up at 4am and felt like I'd pass out any minute by 9:45A.M. So I called my ride (Gramma) and told her not to come pick me up and laid down and took forever falling asleep. When I finally did, I woke up 40 some odd minutes later (!!!!!). I'm mostly caught up I think...I still went to bed at 10:30 or so last night and woke up at 5am, but I got a couple hours of sleep around 7:30-9:15 (not exactly two hours, but somewhat close enough).
I had THE EXORCIST playing while I was asleep. The cinematography in that film is so comforting. I guess I'm morbid. Well, I know I am. I'd like to think there was some way of rising above all the muck of my personal interests, but I don't think there is...maybe if I had enough love and appreciation in my heart, I'd be courageous enough to step up and do something bold on the name of God and that would erode my morbidity (woah, spell check didn't see anything wrong with that? I didn't know for sure if that was a real word...heh, could have been goofy and said "morbidicity"...)
Anyway.
With $18 in my pocket and the pressure of Sunday morning and evening and sleep vs. no sleep etc. etc., idk...I feel pretty good today. Me and my mom went to Starbucks this afternoon and then I got a few groceries from Schnucks and ALDI, then we got some dog food for my mom's two doggies. I'm not entirely sure, but I think we'll be OK on cat food the remainder of the month. I got a Michael W. Smith CD coming the mail. It's titled WONDER. I also own SOVEREIGN, which is a really good CD. I like the style and the melodious of it. I only have like 20 or 30 CDS, the only other Christian CD if LIFE WILL RIGHT THE WORDS by The Rocket Summer. If this MWS CD doesn't look like someone threw up on it, that'll make #3. If it looks like trash, I'm not keeping it. You just never know with Hastings Entertainment / GoHastings dotcom; sometimes I buy from them in their brick and mortar store in Cape Gr., MO and b/c they put this thick cellophane on their used merchandise, it's hard to tell if the item is in the condition I'd like it to be in. But buying on their website, it's almost impossible. Asking CS doesn't help.
Not sure what else to say. Guess I'll end it here. G'day all!
God be with you.
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